Chinese couple charged with murder of Korean influencer in Cambodia

Mugshots of a Chinese couple in their 30s arrested by Cambodian police for abandoning the body of a Korean influencer as reported by Rasmei Kampuchea Daily on Sunday. [NEWS1]

Cambodian prosecutors indicted a Chinese couple on a charge of killing a Korean influencer while she was receiving treatment at the couple's beauty clinic, AFP reported Wednesday.

Prosecutor Plang Sophal told AFP that the couple, Lai Wenshao and Cai Huijuan, has been charged with "murder accompanied by torture" and that they may face life imprisonment if convicted.

The Korean influencer, a 33-year-old live streamer Byun Ah-yeong, was found dead on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on June 6, according to Cambodian media reports.

Her body was found wrapped in red cloth in a pond.

The Cambodian police arrested Lai and Cai for murder and body dump charges based on their fingerprints on the cloth.

The suspects, both in their 30s, reportedly testified to the police that they abandoned Byun's body after she had died under seizure while receiving treatment at their shop on June 4.

Prosecutors have refuted their claims and indicted them for a possible life sentence.

Byun, also known as BJ Ahyeong, was an influencer for the Korean video streaming platform AfreecaTV with more than 250,000 followers on her social media.

BJ is short for broadcast jockey, a Korean term for people who stream live videos.

A spokesperson for Korea's Foreign Ministry said Sunday that the ministry was "providing necessary consular assistance to the bereaved family."

BY SOHN DONG-JOO [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]